Excluded records are not subject to the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act(FIPPA).The hospital is not required to disclose records that fall under an exclusion.Individuals have the right to appeal the hospital’s decision to the Information and Privacy Commission (IPC) when the hospital claims an exclusion under FIPPA.

Information that is excluded from FIPPA includes:

Labour Relations s.65(6)

Research and Teaching Materials s.65(8.1)

Ecclesiastical Records s.65(5.3)

Operations of a Hospital Foundation s.65(5.4)

The Administrative Records of a Member of a Health Profession Listed in Schedule 1 to the Regulated Health Professions Act, 1991 that relate to the member’s personal practice s.65(5.5)

Records Related to Charitable Donations to a Hospital s.65(5.6)

Records Related to the Provision of Abortion Services s.65(5.7)

Exempt record

Exempt records must be processed under FIPPA to determine how and to what extent an exemption applies. The hospital may have grounds to refuse to disclose information if an exemption applies, but must provide information regarding the exemption claimed. Individuals have the right to appeal the hospital’s decision to the IPC when the hospital claims an exemption under FIPPA.

Information that is exempt fromFIPPA includes the following, with links to the appropriate policy sections in the Government of Ontario's Freedom of Information and Privacy Manual:

Advice or recommendations of an employee or consultant related to a suggested course of action to be accepted/rejected during the deliberative process, unless the record is more than 20 years old or the head has publicly cited the record as the basis for making a decision or formulating a policy. Some reports and most factual material must be disclosed.

Law Enforcement s.14:When disclosure could interfere with an investigation undertaken with a view to a law enforcement proceeding or from which a law enforcement proceeding is likely to result.This might apply to: administrative tribunals, student/employee disciplinary investigations, etc.

Records that contain trade secrets or financial, commercial, scientific or technical information that belongs to the institution and has monetary or potential monetary value or where the disclosure could reasonably be expected to prejudice the economic interests or competitive position of the institution.

Records that are subject to solicitor-client privilege. Records that are prepared by or for counsel employed or retained by an educational institution for use in giving legal advice or in contemplation for use in litigation.

This section of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act (FIPPA) provides a discretionary exemption relating to records, the disclosure of which could reasonably be expected to seriously threaten the safety or health of any individual. The wording "reasonable expectation of harm" requires an institution to establish a clear and direct linkage between disclosure of information and the harm alleged.

This discretionary exemption allows an institution to refuse disclosure of a record where:

the record or the information contained in the record has been published or is currently available to the public;or

there are reasonable grounds to believe that the record or information will be published by the institution within 90 days of the request, or within a further period of time needed for printing the material or for translating it before printing